Chelsea pay ‘record’ for Harder

Chelsea Women have signed Pernille Harder, the former Uefa Player of the Year, on a three-year deal from Champions League runners-up Wolfsburg.

The German club claim the move, revealed in Monday’s Daily Telegraph, involved a “record transfer fee in women’s football”, understood to be £250,000 to £300,000.

The 27-year-old, seen as one of the best players in Europe, was unveiled by Chelsea yesterday and will be available for Sunday’s season-opening Barclays FA Women’s Super League match against Manchester United.

One of the most prolific forwards in women’s football, Harder, who is a four-time Frauen Bundesliga winner, scored 103 times in 113 matches at Wolfsburg. She twice finished as the Frauen Bundesliga’s top scorer and was named as Germany’s Footballer of the Year for 2020. In Europe, she has scored 25 times in 28 Champions League games.

Ralf Kellermann, Wolfsburg Women’s sports director, said: “Taking into account the fact that we are talking about a record transfer fee – Pernille would only have been tied to us for 10 months anyway – this is one, for everyone involved, acceptable solution.”

Harder, who can play in any forward position or in an attacking-midfield role, becomes the latest big name to join the WSL, following the arrival of World Cup winners Rose Lavelle and Sam Mewis to Manchester City and Jess Fishlock to Reading. Lucy Bronze and Alex Greenwood are also expected to move to City following the expiry of their Lyon contracts on Aug 31.